Archive for the ‘the lady’ Category

I think I’ve already established that I love makeup. I love trying new products, buying new products, oohing and aahing over the pretty little packages… just about anything to do with makeup. And when I find a product I love, I stay loyal to it. I just hate when it gets discontinued! My absolute favorite powder has been discontinued. I used to be able to find it online but now I can’t. My favorite lipstick is no longer easy to find. It’s so frustrating!!!

Right now, I have two mascaras that I absolutely adore. One is a great every day mascara and the other is so amazing but expensive that I save it for special occasions or those days when I just need a boost and pretty eyelashes are just the ticket.

CoverGirl Lash Blast

What an awesome mascara! I love it. I love the fat orange container and the big brush. The brush lets you get every little lash and it doesn’t smudge. It washes off easily and makes your lashes look amazing. And amazing lashes means you look beautiful, awake and ravishing. What more can a girl ask for? Oh and did I mention it’s not expensive? Love me some LashBlast!

Yves St. Laurent Faux Cils

This mascara rocks! It gives you unbelievably long, gorgeous lashes that really do look like false eyelashes. And it comes in a really cool gold tube. I feel fancy just putting it on! I don’t know how it makes lashes look so great but here is what their website says:

Its secret: the triple-film complex. A coating film for intensity, a conditioning film for curve, a fixing film for long-lasting effectiveness. Even the brush applicator combines nylon fibers of varying diameters for volume enhancement as never before.

All I know is that it works. It is kind of expensive and not always easy to find locally but I promise, it’s worth it!

Have a favorite mascara? I’d love to hear about it!

I saw this little miracle product on TLC’s What Not to Wear. Carmindy, the makeup artist, uses it a lot and I’m always willing to give something new a try. A few drops of Transformer turns any eye shadow into a great eye liner. It lasts and lasts and really cuts down on having to buy a bunch of eyeliners. It’s a little bottle but you only use a couple of drops at a time, so it lasts forever! Don’t put it directly into your eyeshadow though!

I also have the Paula Dorf brush that goes with it and I highly recommend that as well. It’s angeled and you can do a thin line or a thick line. Very versatile! The eye liner is waterproof but does wash off easily.

Give it a try! Just think of all the eye shadows you have just sitting there, waiting to become an awesome, waterproof eye liner!

This magical solution instantly turns eyeshadow into a liquid liner. Simply place a few drops into the eyeshadow cover, dab brush into liquid, glide along the outer edge of the shadow and then apply to eyelid. Never put Transformer directly into eyeshadow!

Paula’s Tip: To create the illusion of fuller lashes, dab color on the upper inside root of lashes, all along the lashline.

Here’s the link to the brush.

Paula Dorf Angle Liner Brush     Paula Dorf’s Angle Liner brush is the perfect tool for applying shadow as a liner. Dampen the brush and dip it into your shadow pot to pick up some color, then lightly press the brush along the lashline.

Let me know how you like it!

The warm weather this week has knocked me over the head with two things: it’s almost spring which means shorts and sleeveless shirts and it’s just three weeks until we go to Curacao which means a bathing suit. Yikes! I’ve been hiding my muffin top for a few months now but it’s time to get serious. My daughter is seemingly fascinated with muffin tops ever since she heard me on the phone discussing mine. I’ve assured her that it is not something sweet to eat. Unfortunately I pointed out my muffin top to her and she has since proceeded to show total strangers her nonexistent muffin top which of course involves her lifting up her shirt. But she does still have her little baby belly which is too cute for words.

Anyway…. back to my muffin top. My friend Leisa just told me about the Flat Belly Diet. The cover of the book says you can lose 15 lbs in just 32 days! So now I am on the Flat Belly Diet… at least for the 4-day anti-bloat jumpstart. I figure that will be better than nothing at this point! I don’t really need to lost 15 lbs but I’d definitely be happier with a flatter belly. Today is day one and so far… so good. It says no coffee but I did have half a cup which I guess didn’t get me off to the best start! Nothing like changing the rules with the very first bite. But come on… it’s my coffee. There’s only so much I’m willing to give up for a flat belly.

Breakfast was cornflakes, skim milk, applesauce and sunflower seeds and that’s a lot more than I usually eat for breakfast. Plus the Sassy Water. I’m pretty sure that all you really lose the first 4 days is a gob of water weight due to the large amount of Sassy Water you have to drink but I’m good with that. And the water is pretty good (cucumbers, lemons, ginger and mint mixed with water). It’s hard to go anywhere since I need to powder my nose quite frequently (Mrs. Blumer very much frowns on any term relating to pee). Lunch was turkey, one cheese stick and a pint of cherry tomatoes (and trust me… that’s a lot of tomatoes!). I think I get a “smoothie” this afternoon and then dinner. It’s actually a lot of food. I did however notice the Pinot Grigio is not on the list. Hmmm…..

I’ll keep you posted about the success/failure of the Flat Belly Diet and if I actually stick with it. I just keep telling myself… 3 weeks until bathing suit… 3 weeks until bathing suit… to which the part of me that isn’t terribly interested in the Flat Belly Diet responds…. but you’ll be in Curacao and no one knows you there. So far the good me is winning but it’s only been 1/2 a day. The book has a lot of recipes and a pretty thorough explanation of what’s going on but I haven’t read it yet. I saw 15 lbs in 32 days and just started doing it.

In the meantime, I’m back to walking and Pilates (or my version of Pilates since my very long body doesn’t really want to do some of those moves). And if nothing works, there’s always a Miracle Bathing Suit and vacation pictures from the neck up.

My name is Susanne and I love makeup. I love buying makeup. I love playing with makeup. Unfortunately I think I’ve passed this down to my 4-year old daughter. She wants to wear everything I do and sneaks into my makeup stash on a consistent basis.

I had heard about this amazing blush from Smashbox that works with your personal chemistry to make the perfect “blush” for your skin. I’ve always loved cheek stains, especially if they are long-lasting and natural looking. And a makeup that changes color on your skin…. very enticing and let’s face it, hard to resist for a girl like me. Of course I used to LOVE mood lipstick and was totally convinced that my mood would change the color on my lips. Gosh… remember those? They were so cool and there was just something very naughty feeling about putting on blue lipstick. I had every color… blue, green, orange…

Smashbox says, The first intuitive blush, this clear gel reacts with your personal skin chemistry to turn cheeks the color you blush naturally, in just seconds! O-GLOW works on every skin tone, from the lightest to the darkest, to give everyone a customized flush of color. When applied, your skin’s moisture activates the innovative formula, producing a rosy blush that lasts all day.

The reviews on O-Glow are generally positive so I decided to give it a whirl. Okay… I would have tried it anyway because I’m a sucker for something new. I do really like it. Part of why I like it is that it’s just really cool. It’s a clear gel that magically turns into a blush when you put in on your skin. Just use a little though! It goes a long way. The color is definitely pink but it works on my skin. If you have fair skin, it might be a little bright but you can always throw some powder on it to tone it down. I think it will be great during the summer in place of a powder blush. I find it to be fairly long-lasting. It’s not perfect but it’s a fun product to try and works great as a lip stain too. Speaking of lips….

They also have the same concept for lips. I haven’t personally tried this because I don’t care for gloss but after looking at the reviews for it around the web, it seems to be well-loved. Same concept… goes on clear and works with your body chemistry to become the perfect shade.

But I digress from the cheek stains…

My very, very favorite cheek stain is apparently no longer made. It is L’Oreal Translucide Sheer Blush. My personal choice is Blushing Glow. Went on perfectly and lasted forever. Adored it! I still have a little left but I can’t bear to use it up so I just gaze at it lovingly every now and then. L’Oreal also discontinued my absolute favorite mascara a few years ago, Le Grand Curl. It was perfect! Curled your lashes without having to use a lash curler, didn’t clump, cool container…. I obviously have a love/hate relationship with L’Oreal. I fall in love and then they take it away.

A close second is Benetint by Benefit cosmetics. If you can get past the smell (roses!), it’s a great product and totally versatile. Works just as well on the cheeks as it does on the lips. Plus the little bottle lasts forever.

It gives you a lovely rose color (which I guess is why it smells like roses) and is super long-lasting. Claims to be waterproof but I haven’t actually tried that out. This Belle does not like to go underwater and I generally do not stick my cheeks up in the rain so I’ll just have to trust their claim. The applicator is like a nail polish brush so it takes a bit of practice to get it right but totally worth it. Again… a little goes a long way.

It’s Spring. Put a little color on those white cheeks!